Door-releasing apparatus.



No. 819,208. PATENTED MAY 1, 1906. O. A. GRIQUI. DOOR RELEASING APPARATUS.

APPLICATION FILED 2, 1905.

MAY 3 SHEETS-SHEET 1,

W/ MMQ No. 819,208- PATENTED MAY 1, 1906. 0. A. CRIQUI.

DOOR RELEASING APPARATUS. APPLICATION FILED MAY 2, 1905.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 2,

No. 819,208. PATENTED MAY 1, 1906 c. A. GRIQUI. DOOR RELEASING APPARATUS.

APPLICATION FILED MAYZ. 1905.

3 SHEETSSHEET 3 CHARLES A. CRIQUI, OF BUFFALO, NEW YORK.

DOOR-RELEASING APPARATUS- Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented May 1, 1906.

Application filed May 2,1905. Serial No. 258,480.

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that 1, CHARLES A. ORI UI, a citizen of the United States, residing at Buffalo, in the county of Erie and State of New York, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Door-Releasing Apparatus, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to a releasing apparatus for opening or unbolting the exits of theaters, factories, schoolhouses, asylums, hotels, &c., to permit the ready escape of the occupants in case of fire or a anic.

The object of the invention is to provide a reliable ap aratus of this kind by which all the exits of such buildin can be released or opened simultaneously om different parts 0 thesame.

In the accom anying drawings, consisting of three sheets, Figure 1 is a vertical longitudinal section of a theater equipped with the improvement. Fi .2 is a face view of a pair of doors, showing t e pneumatic bolt-operating device and connections. Fig. 3 is a vertical longitudinal section of said operating device, on an enlarged scale. Fig. 4-isa diagrammatic erspective view of the several exits and the pipe connections. leading to their bolt-operatin devices.

Similarletters of reference indicate corresponding parts throughout the several views.

A indicates the doors or exits, preferably arranged in pairs and hinged to swin out- Ward. One door of each pair has verticallysliding bolts B B, suitably guided thereon and entering sockets C C secured to the floor and the lintel, res ectively.

In the preferre a paratus shown in the drawings the two b0 ts of each pair of doors are simultaneously retracted by a ear-pinion d, mounted on a horizontal sha d and meshing with oppositely-arran ed'g'ear-racks e e formed on or connected wit the bolts, so that upon turnin the shaft in one or the other direction t e bolts are projected or withdrawn in an obvious manner. The shaft isjournaled in a casing F, secured to the inner rol ers g, journaled in the casing.

II is a pressure-cylinder, preferably mounted on the same baselate as the casing F and containing a piston k The latter carries a gear-rack k, which meshes with the gear-pinion d, so that when the piston is driven forwardly b admitting compressed air or other motive turned in the proper direction to retract the bolts B B and release the doors. In practice the piston-rack k is in a different plane from the bolt-racks e e, and the gear-pinion uid to the cylinder the shaft (1 is is of sufficient Width to engage with the severein shown air or other fluid under pressure and ocated 7 5 in a suitable part of the building. M is a main pressure line or pi e connected with said tank and extending engthwise throu h the basement or along the lower floor of t e building to the front part of the same and thence vertically through the several floors, either along the tier oi doors next to the foyer, as shown in Fi s. 1 and 4, or centrally of the wall between t e auditorium and the foyer, the vertical portion or said main line being designated M N N indicate a sup lemental line or pi e, preferably running ad iacent to and arallel with the corresponding horizontal an vertical portions M M of the main line and extending from a point near the pressure-tank to a point opposite the upper extremit of the main line. With this supplementa line are connected upright pipes 0 0, extendin through the several floors of the builiding an along the adjacent tiers of doors, and from them lead lateral branch pipes 0, each-connected with one of the pressure-cylinders H on that side of the house. The ressure-cylinders of the doors next to the oyer and on the same side 01' the buildin are supplied from the supplemental line N by individual branch pipes 0 N is an extension of the supplemental line arranged at that side of the bui ding opposite the main line M M and serving to en p y the pressure-cylinders of the doors on t at side of the building. This extension is connected with the supplemental line by transverse pipes p p.

q g g are upright pipes IlSlIlg from and connected with the extension N and corresponding to the pipes o 0, and g g g are branch pipes leading therefrom to the ressure-cylinders on the last-named side 0 the building and corresponding to the branch pipes 0 0 Ordinary hose or other suitable flexible joints may be employed for connecting the pipe-sections mounted on the doors and the door-frames, as shown at 0 in Fig. 2, to permit thedoors to be opened and closed without breaking the connectionbetween the cylinders H and supplemental pressure-line.

r 1" r r indicate short pipes connecting the supplemental line N N with the main line M M and preferably located on the stage on the ground floor and in the balcony and the gallery when the apparatus is installed in a theater or similar building. Each of these pipes'or connections is provided with a handvalve 8 for controlling the passage of the pressure fluid from the main line into the supplemental line and thence'to the cylinders. It is also desirabletb control the release of the doors from the foyer of the theater, and for this purpose the main and supplemental lines have extensions M N leading to that part of the building, these extensions having a connection t, containing a controlling-valve t, as

shown in Fig. 4.

In the normal condition of the apparatus the various controlling-valves are closed and the main line M M, with its extension M is under pressure, while the supplemental line N N and its extensions N N and their connections are empty, permittin the bolts of the several doors to be freely an individually operated by hand, if desired.

' -When it is desired to release all of the doors or exits simultaneously, as in the event of a fire or panic, this is quickly and positively accomplished by simply o emng any one of the several controllin -va ves, when the pressure fluid will instantl y pass through the supplemental'line-and its branches into all of the pneumatic'cylinders, actuating their pistonsand---withdrawing the bolts of all the doors.

From an inspection of Fig- 4 it will be observed that there is free communication between the supplemental line and all the branches and pressure-cylinders connected therewith, and therefore the opening of any one of the-controlling-valves permits the motive fluid to pass from the main pressureline to all parts of the supplemental line and is followed by 'the ractically instantaneous release of all the com. As the controlling-valves are located not only on the stag e and in the foyer,but on the upper floors of t 0 building as Well, theentir'e system of doors can be released by an attendant or other person stationed-in any part of the house, permittin a hast exit of the audience and efiectua ly guar against the deplorable loss of life which 0 n attends the breaking out of a fire ina theater or similar public building .where persons gather in large numbers.

I claim as my invention V 1. An apparatus for simultaneously releasing a plurality of doors from different points, comprisin pneumatic operating means for the bolt of each door, a source'of fluid-pres- .sure, a main pressure-line connected with said source, a supplemental pressure-line extending along the main line, connections'between said main and supplemental lines located in different parts of'the building, controlling valves in said connections, and branch pipes leading from said supplemental line to said individual bolt-operating means, substantially as set forth.

2. In an apparatus for simultaneously releasing a plurality of doors from different points the cornbinationwith a building having a plurality of floors or stories and exit-doors on each floor provided bolts, of pneumatic operatin means for the bolt of each door, a source 0 fluid-pressure, a main pressure-line connected with said source and rising to 'the uppermost of the floors included in the system, a supplemental pressure-line extending along the main line, valved connections between said main and supplemental lines located on different floors, and valveless branch pipes connected with the supplemental line at different floors and leading to said individual bolt-operating means, substantially as --extending lengthwise along one side of the building and vertically to the uppermost of the floorsincluded in the system, a supplemental pressure-line'extending along said main line for supplying the pneumatic boltoperating means on that side of the building, an extension of said supplemental line arranged along the opposite side of the building for supplying the pneumatic operating means of the corres ondlng door-boltsfconnections' between sai main and supplemental lines located in the lower front and rear parts of the building and on the u per floors thereof, controlling-valves in sai connections, and branch ipes leading from said sup lemental line an its extension to the severa bolt-opcrating means of the system, substantially as set forth.

Witness my hand this 27th day of April,

O. F. Gama, 

